Apparatus for the continuous replacement of full cops with empty cops



Nov. 5, 1968 5, 555 ET AL APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS REPLACEMENT OF FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 25; 1964 INVENTORS EMIL FESS ANDREAS MAHR EBERHARD GRIMM BY J 3 V AfToR EY Nov. 5, 1968 F555 ET AL 3,408,806

APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS REPLACEMENT OF FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS Filed June 25, 1964 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS EMIL FESS ANDREAS MAHR EBERHARD GRIMM BY My, OML AIW AT TOR NE YS.

Nov. 5, 1968 F555 ET AL 3,408,806

APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS REPLACEMENT OF FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS Filed June 25, 1964 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 ID X \Y BY EBERHARD GRIMM E. FESS ET AL Nov. 5, 1968 3,408,806 APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS REPLACEMENT OF FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS riled June 23, 1964 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORS EMIL FESS ANDREAS MAHR EBERHARD GRIMM KJEYS. 2

Nov. 5, 1968 3 ET AL APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUS REPLACEMENT OF FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS Filed June 25, 1964 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTORS EMIL FESS ANDREAS MAHR EBERHARD GRIMM ATTORNEYS.

3,408,806 REPLACEMENT COPS 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 NOV. 5, 1968 5, 555 ET AL APPARATUS FOR THE CONTIN 5 OF FULL COPS WITH TY Filed June 25, 1964 INVENTORS EMIL FESS ANDREAS MAHR EBERHARD GRIMM W'fim ATTORNEYS.

Unitsd State Ofi APPARATUS FOR THE CONTINUOUSREPLACB MENT F FULL COPS WITH EMPTY COPS] Emil Fess, Andreas Main, and Eberhard Grimm, Ing'ol- 'stadt, Germany, assignors to*'Deutscher Spin'nereimaschinenbau Ingol'stadt, lngolstadt' (Danube), Germany,

acorporation'of'Germany 7 Filed June.25, 1964, Sex-No. 378,013 Claims priority, application GF any,.July 4, 19.63,

, 1 in c qs ro ussf T B I QT 0 ms tpsukrii Apparatus for lifting cops spindles; The cop-manipulating apparatus is mounted on' 'aa-carriage which moved in a direction opposite the direction of; movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement of the spindle and the engaging member.

The present invention relates to a process and to apparatus for the continuous replacementoffulltcops with empty cops, i.e.-empty' cop-tubes, on, for example, ring spinning machines and ring twisting machines, by means of a dotting apparatus which can travel along on the machine on rails at constant speed and-which canbe equipped with one container for feeding the emptycops and one for dolfed cops,-the cops being dotfed successively one at a time by means of a grasping device.

I Cop dofling apparatus disposed on a carriage traveling along the'machine at constant speed-havebecome known in various forms'.--These.cop-doifers which move continuouslyalong themachine have the=advantage in-general, over cop dotfers which move step-wisealong the machine, of a simpler driving means. Another advantage of such apparatus'consists inthe-fact that the entiremass of the doffing apparatus together. with the' magazines for empty tubes and full cops does not have to be accelerated and braked again at each step of operation. I

home of the cop dofiing apparatus whichhas become known, and which travels along the machine -at-constant speed, the cops are forced otfxthe' spindles by a lifting wedge (German Patent 1,111,075). In'this case,--however, there exists the danger of exerting-a tilting stress on the spindle bearings and of distorting them, which can happen especially when a 'cop is set somewhat more tightly' than usual on the spindle. Damage can furthermore be caused to the-tubes or to the'yarn by the liftingwedge. Another disadvantage of this dofiing method consists in the fact that it cannot be used on spinning machines with balloon narrowing rings.

Another cop doffingapparatus moving along the machine at constant speed has become known (US. Patent 3,070,949),whicli doifs the cops successively, one by one, by means of a grasping device; the cops are seized'at their lower end by a rotating gripper during the-travel of the cop doffer, and are twisted from the spindle.-This apparatus has the disadvantage that the cop tubes have to be'especially constructed 'at the bottom-end so as to provide a place for the gripper to grasp it: Furthermore,

such a cop dofiing apparatus can beiused only on machines without balloon narrowingrings. 1

These disadvantages which occurin cop changers of the prior art are eliminated in'the use of-the presentinvention by the fact that while the carriage is moved at constant speed, amovementrelative to the.carriage is v .latented Nov. 5, 1968 .7 l 2 1 impartedto the gripper disposed on the carriage and seizing the individual cops at their upper end, so that, during its dofling movement, the gripper is temporarily substantially motionless with reference to the spindle being stripped and the direction of movement of the carriage. The. movement of the gripper relatively to the advancing movement of the carriage can be produced by a horizontal swinging movement of the gripper, which simultaneously serves to cover the distance between the spindle being strippedand the point at which the cops are discharged. The swinging movement of the gripper can be a rocking movement limited to the sector between the discharge point and the spindle,.:or it can be a rotational movement wherein the gripper moves from thedischarge point to'-the spindle and back again to the discharge point, without reversal of the direction of movement. The movement, however, can alsotake place in such a manner that the necessary relative movement betweengripper and carriage'is produced by a vertical swinging movement which simultaneously draws the cop from the spindle. Likewise, according to the invention, a relative movement can be imparted to the means disposed on the carriage for feeding empty cops to the spindles, so that the feed means is temporarily substantially motionless during the cop placement, with reference to the spindle being supplied, while the carriage continues to advance. The cop, following such placement on the spindle, can be pushed down to the in-place or loaded position by a pressure roller which likewise receives a movement relatively to the carriage, so that it is substantially motionless during the pressing movement, with reference to the spindle and the direction of movement of the carriage, while the carriage continues to advance.

One special advantage of the method of the invention consists in that the cops are seized at their apex in such a manner that neither the tubes nor the yarn wound thereon can be damaged. Furthermore, the cop changer of the invention can be installed on machines equipped manipulation of a cop with respect to a spindle therefor.

The apparatus includes a carriage, means for moving the carriage over a path going past the spindle at a constant speed with respect to the spindle, and cop moving means movably mounted on the carriage and adapted for facilitating the carrying out of the manipulation as the carriage passes the spindle. The cop moving means includes an engaging member for engaging the cop. Means are provided for moving the cop moving means relative to the carriage to impart to the engaging member movement thereof opposite of the movement of the carriage to substantially eliminate relative movement of the engaging means and the spindle in the direction of movement of the carriage, during the manipulation.

The movement of the engaging member to substantially eliminate relative movement, as aforesaid, is for the purpose of facilitating the removal of a filled cop, and such movement is in addition to the movement provided for effecting the removal of the filled cop. In general, the removal movement is a lifting movement to lift the filled cop from the spindle. Thus, the apparatus of the invention includes a first mover means for moving the cop gripping means to move a filled cop engaged by the gripping means engaging member, axially of the spindle for removal of the filled cop from the spindle, and second mover means to-move the cop engaging means opposite the movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement of the engaging member and the spindle, as aforesaid, while the engaging member is in engagement with the filled cop and until removal of the cop from its spindle.

The invention is' further described in the accompanying drawing,-wherein:'-- I FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a carriage according to the invention, showing the carriage disposed in front of a device haVingspindles" and in combination'withwhich the carriage of the invention can beused; 1

FIG. 1a is a view taken along line 1a -1a in FIG. ,1, showing the magazine for the cops; and-showing thefconveyor schematically; FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line, 2-52 of FIG. 1, but showing the gripper 7 in FIG. -1 in a different positionfrom that" shown -in FIG. 1,..to better ,illustratethe device; v r FIG. 3 is a view; partially in cross-sectiomof a gripv per-for the apparatus of the inventiony 1 i FIG. 4 is alview of a part of the gripper shownjnFIG. 3, showing the operating parts of; the gripper in adi-f- .ferent position;

FIG. 5 and FIG. structions for the gripper;

FIG. 7 is a view ot a portionof the apparatus in FIG. 1, taken along line 7-7 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of the part of the apparatus shown in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a side elevation view taken along line 99 in FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of the gripper utilized in the apparatus shown in FIG. 1, and further 6 show, respectively, alternative conindicating the manner of operation of the gripper, whereby relative movement between the gripper engaging member and the spindle is eliminated;

FIG. 11 is a schematic representation of a gripper, in top plan view, of alternative construction and operation to that for the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a schematic representation indicating an taken along The carriage 1 is resiliently mounted on wheels 4 and is provided with wheel 29 which rolls on the track 2 secured to the spinning machine 1a. The lower side of rail 2 is cut to provide a rack 5 for engagement by pinion 6 of the carriage 1. The spinning, machinealso has a guide rail 3 on which the wheel 28 of the carriage rides.

Carriage 1 is provided with an engaging member or seizing element 8 disposed on a gripper 7. See FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. The seizing element 8 is actuated, for example, by an electromagnet 10 through a two-armed lever 9. The

gripper 7 is connected through a push rod 11 and cross: I

head 12 with a pair of push rods 13 and 13'. The push rods 13 and 13 are mounted at their lower extremity on the crank pin 14 of crank 15. The crankshaft 16 is driven by the motor20 (FIG. 1) through a gearing including motor driven sprocket wheel 19 and idler sprocket 17,

fixedly secured by set screws 25 to the shaft 2 4. Rod 26 --is-straddled--by a rocket fork-27' rigidly afiixed to the push rod 11 by set screw 27.

The crank pin 14 travelsin a circular path around the crankshaft 16 by means of crank 15. The push rods 13, 13'. are rotatably positioned"at their .lower. end, onthe crank, in '14 and at their upper ends, ,on, crosshead" 12. ri idly arr n age .the 'pirsh rod 11'. ,Thus ss "laiiiti ig pu hed us remain .Pl$ Q 9S ;9ll5ii "a e ng.fq s s.2 .-v wh reby. heip rod 11 with gripper 7 is pushed upwaid-Thisresults in the upward and downward movement. otthe gripper 7 (Leattic vertical. dofiing movemehe over the spindle 53). The gripper 7, however,""rifust simultaneously make a swinging movemfitfo'r dischaxge of the filled cop 30 or placement of the empty..c.op.on..the spindle, respectively. This swingingmoyernent isinitiated by the cam 21, which is rigidly connec ted 'wifh ciankshaft'16. Thristhrough the :cam'21 over therroll' 22afid-the lever 23,'the shaft '24 is mocked. Through this turningmovement,.the1rodf26 (fix- :edly secured toith'e; shaft -24-gby1 means of-holders 25): is :also moved to andafro. Rod -26 is straddled. by arrocker fork-927. rigidly afiixedto the pushrod ,11. Therebyzthe .turning movement of .the shaft 24 is transferred to the are withdrawn therefrom and fed to the spindle loading device by conveyor 39. The magazine 38 is removably mounted on carriage 1 v Referring to FIG. 1 and FIG. 1a, the magazine 38 is mounted in the carriage with its bottom inclined providing gravity. feed to the bottom edge corner 381;, and it has a downwardly depending partition 38a; disposed parallel to saidbottom edge corner and terminating short of the bottom of the magazine a distance suchthat cops can pass under the partition. The partition provides the load ing section 380 and the'holding section 38d and is spaced from the walls ofthe magazine which are parallel there;- to, a distance less than thelength of the copsso that cops cannot workiinto a position in which they are disposed perpendicular to the flights 39a.of the conveyor 39. Fur;- ther, by reason of the positioning of,the partition and the inclined attitude of the magazine when place on the conveyor, thecops will work to position wherein theyare 1 parallelto the fiights 39a.Thu s a copies is shown in FIG.

1a, in the section tothe right of'the partition will work to a position as is shown for the cops on the left of the partition. Theflights 39;: are constructed and spaced so that there'is room for but one cop between next adjacent fl ht The pre-sort ed tubs'37 automatically feed themselves between theycleats 39; of the conveyor chain 39 (FIG. 8 It, due to the inclination of the magazine 38. The spin; dl eloadin g device .consists pf achute 40. into which the tubesare dropped onto a deflector 41(FIG. 7) by. which I the tubes are guided into avtribe holder 42, so that they arestanding ontheir wider ends in the hol der 42.. Such positioning of the tubes is assured by taking care to. posi- .tion the tubes .in'the magazine with their wider endsad} used, e.g. a horizontal tongue and groove connection. The

jacent each other and with all wider-ends disposed in a manner corresponding to thedeposit of the tubes in the holder 42 with wider endsdown. The desired positioning of thejtubes is maintained in their travel from the magazine 38 to the holderv 42. The tube holder 42.is pivotingly mounted-in the two bearings'43 and 44 v(FIG.'7),'and is moved through the; fork 45 -by. a. pin'46 fixedly fastened to the pusher 60:'Underneath the tube holder 42 there" is disposed animmovable holder48 whose standing surface is coplanar with the tube standing surface 47 of the tube holder 42'. The tube holder 42 isadditionally" provided with -two springs" 50 to hold-back the tubes '37. Pusher 60 is fixedly secured to sha'ft' pin 61 andis coupled by means of its shaft pin 61 (FIG.- 8 and FIG. 9) and a onearmed lever 72 with a cam foll'ower'7-1. The cain follower 71* runs on the track 70 of a cam 69 fastened on shaft 73. The pin 61"is journaled injournal blocks 61a, 61b. The carri-ageis provided with anopening 610, through which the lever 72 can be seen. The cam 69 serves simultaneously as a crankfor the push rod 68. Push rod'68 is connected through an'articulation 67 to a one-armed lever 52."An elastic roller 51 is provided on the one-armed lever.'52 pivoting-about the pin 54 so as to press the tubes 37 onto'the spindles 53., v

The movement of the pusher 60,-pushes-the tubes 37 intozthe holder 42, and the movement-of the holder 42 serves to move the holder so that the outermost tube in the-holder drops onto-aspindle 53. The roller 51 then pushes the-tubes home on the spindle'53; The movement of pusher-60'is'effected by its shaft pin 61 (FIG. 9), which is connected with the one-armed lever 72,a'nd the lever.72 in turn is connected with cam follower 71. This cam follower 71 runs on the track 70 of the cam 69 and, as described above, transfers the movement of the cam follower 71 to the pusher 60. On this pusher 60 there is affixed the pin 46 which movesthe tube' holder 42 to and fro by' means of the fork 45 in which pin 46 is received. The cam 69 also actuates the lever 52, through the push rod 68, so that the tubes 37 are'pressed home on the -;spindles .53 by the roller 51.

The-cop .dofiingmachineidescribed here in detail'is-so constructed that it canbe 'used on all spinning machines of equal division (spindle spacing) and cop tube length, which areequipped with the corresponding carriage rails Zand guide rails 3.-Accordingly, a single cop doffing'rnachine can be'u'sed for any desirednumber of spinning machines. Nevertheless, it is also possible to "associate a separate'cop dofling machine with each side of a ring spinning-machine. If a cop doffing machine is tobe'used on a plurality of ring spinning machines, and appropriate safety :device must be provided for engaging and disen gaging, so that the working movements of the cop dofling machine coincide precisely in each case with thespindle spacing in the spinning machine. This safety device may COIlSlSt,fl example, of a largertooth in theraek' 5 on carriage rail 2 and a corresponding gap in the pinion 6. Also, a cam can be mounted. laterally on pinion 6 to cOQPerate with a corresponding stop pin disposed on carriage rail 2.

The electrical. motor 20 is supplied with power by meansof a third rail which is not shown, or by means of a flexible cable.

8 As soon as the ring spinning machine stops whenthe cops are full,-the:cop;dofiing machine is started, which can be brought about automatically by the spinning machine after the wind-under, through the use of-appropriate means, or else manually by the operator. When the motor 20 of the cop dofiing machine is turned on, the carriagev 1, and with it the gripper -7 and seizing element. or insert 8 mounted thereon, moves at constant speed in the direction; of arrow P- past. the spindles 53 of the spinningrnachine. The gripper-J is at the same time so driven that, in spitev of the uniform traveling speed of carriage L a-vertical dofling movementis produced above the spindles 53. As it appears from FIGS. l 10,.the car: riage 1 is moved continuously-in the direction of the arrow P whereupon the gripper 7 with the seizing element 8 is swung by. the"cam:21 and the corresponding parts 22- through. 27 from the. filled cop discharge position A into position 8 above spindle 53. SeeFIG. 10. At the discharge position A the filledcops are released to the hopper 31 (F16. 1 While the carriage}, and hence 6. also, the pivot point-L ofgripper 7,"'-'moves'steadilyon the point L', the gripper 7 is 'pivoted about' the angle on in such a manner that theseizing element 8 stands still (with respect to the' direction of movement of the carriage 1) at'spin'clle 53 while carriage lcontinues to move onward. This relative standstill -of the seizing element 8 above the apex -of the spindle lasts for' a' fraction of a revolution of the crankshaft"'16 (FIG! 2'),*duri'r"1g which time the gripper 7 is lowered and thenraised'again'with the 'cop. As soon as the seizing element 8 has be'en introduced, at the bottom'dead center of the rising and fallingmovemenb: into 'the upper part of the' cop "30 where-it extends-somewhat above the top of thespindle, the electromagnet 10 is energized (FIG/3). In'thismanner the connecting rod '58 is moved in the'direction'of the arrow P whereupon" the two-armed-lever 9 performs a. corresponding pivoting movement'about its pivot point 59. The ring-57 onbolt 55 is forced'downward and the seizing element 8, which consists of a resilient or elastic material, is squeezed between thering '57- and-the end plate56 of bolt '55 (FIGS.' 3 and 4). The seizing' element 8 thereupon increases its circumference-and tightly seizesthe cop 30.

After the cop 30 has been pulled from the spindle by the movement of crank 15 (FIG. 1), the push rod 11-is swung back by cam 21: and the corresponding members 22 through 27, until the gripper 7, with the cop hanging from it, is located over the discharge hopper 31 (position A in FIG. 10)., The electromagnet 10 is deenergized by an appropriate switch, -which is not shown, whereuponv the cop 30 is dropped into the discharge hopper 31. The full cops are guided to a" horizontal position in the discharge hopper 31 and are directed to the conveyor chain 33, which injects them into the gathering band 35 of the cop collector 34. I

The pivoting (turning) movement of the shaft 24 is provided by the cam 21, the cam followerroll 22, and lever 23. A switch (not shown) is switched on and off by this cam .21. The electromagnet 10 is connected with the switch and is either switched on (the electromagnet moves the connecting rod-'58 in the direction of the arrow P the two-armed lever 9 thus effects a pivoting movement around its fulcrum 59, expands the gripper 8 and clamps the cop30) or switched off (electromagnet de-energized; connecting. rod 58 moves opposite to the direction of the arrow P thus effecting the reverse pivoting movement .of-the lever 9 around its fulcrum- 59, whereby the, gripper 8 releases its grip on cop 30 so that the cop is .dropped into discharge 'hopper 31).

Thus, the apparatus includes for the dofiing of the filled cops a first mover means in the form of the crank 15, and the parts interconnecting this'c-rank with the pusher rod 11, for reciprocating the gripper-7 in the direction of the axes of the spindles, and a motion provided'by this first mover means serves to effect the lifting of the filled cop from its spindle.'The apparatus further includes a second mover means, in the form of the cam 21 and the parts associated therewith for imparting rotational move ment to the push rod 11, for moving the gripper 7 ma direction transverse to the axes of the spindles. This movement transverse to the axes of the "spindles provides elimination of relative movement of the engaging means in the form of the plug 8 (FIG. 4), and the spindle 53, in the direction of movement of the carriage 1. I

Referring again to FIG. 10, the above-stated second mover means serves to move the gripper 7 pivotally about axis L which isparallel to the axes of the'spindles, through a backstroke, wherein the gripper is moved so that the engaging member 8 thereof is-past through the angle from S to S', and during this backstroke, relative movement, as aforesaid, is eliminated. Further, this second mover means servesto move the gripper 7 throughv a forward stroke. wherein the engaging member, now with a filled cop engaged thereby and in a raised position 7 wherein-thebottomofthe filled cop is'abovethe' top of thespindles, from position-S"to Ss: x c

; -The-'-movernents=-.ofathegripper includenot only the reciprocating movement,-whercin-the lifting of filled cops from the spindles iseffectedgand the describedmovementtransverseto the spindle' 'axes', whereby thlrelative movement is eliminated, but=in addition, a third movement is, provided. Thus, a third mover means is provided to effect movement: of the. gripper so as tocarry a filled cop engaged by the gripper to a position over the hopper 131 (FIG. 1), and the filled "cop is thenreleasedifrorn the gripper 7. so "that itfal1s' into. the hopper-131. This movement can .be provided-byextendingthe are between points S-Sf, sothation the forward stroke of-the. gripper, theengaging-means end of the-gripper is swungto a position such that-atop *heldthereby will be over the hopper 31. -This;- movement of .the' gripperxbeyond' the are 8-5 can betprovided by suitably designing theca'rh 21,-.so as to'provide thexdesired stroke for'the gripper7. Desir-ably,.zthechopper or receiver 31 is positioned for receiving the'filled cops at the end 'or during the forward stroke ofthe gripperuv 1.

The empty cops 37 are carried by conveyor chain 39 from themagazine38 into the chute 40 (FIGS. 7 and 8). The cops 37 slide over the deflector plate 41 into the tube holder 42, while at the same time they are stood up with their wider ends down, in the ready position. An appropriate sensing means can be provided to check the position of the tubes and shut the cop doffer oil. immediately; assoonas the large diameter of a tube is accidentally at the wrong end. Another sensing means can be located in front of the tube setting mechanism to shut off the doffing machine if an empty tube or full cop is still on the spindle being served. When the holder 48 (FIGS. 7 and 8), as a result of the continuous advancement of-carriage 1, movesover an empty spindle 53, the tube holder 42 with the tubes standing therein is swung by the cam .69 (FIG."9)' to move the empty cop which is disposed at the discharge end of'the holder 42, as .is indicated in FIG. 8, from the rest or stand plate 49, so that this empty cop drops ontothe spindle which at this moment is in a position to receive the empty cop. At thesametimev the empty cop 37 is moved in a direction opposite to the directionof'movernent'of carriagevv 1 in such a manner that as-itifalls onto the. spindle it is moved transverse to the spindle axis so that relative movement between empty cop and spindle in the direction of travel of. the carriage 1, is eliminated. Simultaneously, the conveyor chain 39 throws a fresh cop tube 37 into the chute 40. This tubeslides over the deflector 41' and falls with its wide end down, in front of the retracted pusher 60. Pusher 60 is thereupon moveclforward again by the cam 69, thereby swinging tube holder 42 back to its starting position by means of pin 46, and at the same time pushing the tube that has fallen down over deflector 41 into the tube holder '42. When the tube holder has reached the position shown in dash-dotted lines in FIG. 8, the foremost cop tube. has been pushed from the standing surface 47 of, tube holder 42 onto the stand plate 49 of holder 48. The springs 50. hold the next two cop tubes steadyand secure them against accidentally falling when the tube holder 42 swings.

Thus, the apparatus includes. empty cop manipulating means which is mounted on the carriage for manipulation of empty cops during a single passage of the carrier over its path, to place empty cops on spindles from which filled cops have been removed during the same single passage over the path of the carriage. The manipulating means effects placement of an empty cop on a spindle by movement of the cop axially of the spindle into the cop loaded position. The manipulating means includes an empty cop mover, in the form of cam 69 and the linkage of this cam to the holder 42, for moving the empty cop opposite the movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement, in the direction of movement 'ofi-the carriage, of the empty cop-anddhe'spindle on which it is placed during movement of the empty cop axially ofthespindle.

The cop that moves bylfree fall down from the holder 48- onto spindle 5.3 is pressed onto-the spindleby-the roller 51 :mounted on lever 52. See-FIGS.- SHand-S. The pin 54: about which the one-armed lever 52 pivots-is so disposed that the roller 51, in its downwardmovement, simultaneously-moves contrary to-the direction. of movement of carriage 1 whereby it is'substantiallyat a standstill relatively to.the spindle axis in the moment in which it presses down-to cop tube. I i 7 When all the:-spindles -on the-spinning machinehave been served with cop tubes in .the manner described above, the cop dofiing-machine is run' backto'its start ing position. To thisend, a clutch on shafti65' is operated by manual lever 66, thereby shutting-off the'driving-of chain. 18 and-reversing the gearing that controls pinion 6'. The reverse movement-*is designed .as a-"r-apid movement, so that the .cop dofling machine can-be returned to the starting position inaiminimum of time. Theretur'n of the cop dofiing. machine .to the starting poinfcan also be started automatically by an appropriate-"stop atthe end of the spinning machine. When-the cop dofiing machine has reached the end of the spinning machine, it is also possible-to disengage it from carriage rail 2 and supporting rail-3 and, rolling it only on wheels 4, to-bring it to the next spinning machine. 1 i

The cops are taken from the cop dofiingmachine together 'with the gathering band and tied into abundle or put into a container: After the cops have been'removed from the d'ofling machine, a gathering band 35 must again be woundonto shaft 36. The-magazine 38 which has been emptied in the spindle serving operation isreplaced manually with afresh container full of-previouslysorted cop tubes.

Additional examples of embodiments 'for the gripper for stripping the spindles are represented inFIGS; 5 and 6. In the case of the gripper 7 shownin-FIG. 5, the upper portion of the cop 30 being removed is seized externally, the elastic seizing element or socket 8' diminishing'its inside diameter in orderto produce a seizing action. To this end, an appropriate devicesuch as an clect'r'oinagnet 10 as shown in FIG. "3 pivots the two-armed lever 9 about its fulcrum 59 so that it forces the pressure plate Elf-downward, whereupon the seizing element 8' is squeezed between the pressure plate57" and the base plate 57", thereby reducing the inside diameter of thehol'e which is pushed 'over the apex of the'cop tube. In the embodiment shown in FIG."6, the seizing'element or socket of gripper 7 consists of'a noose 8" which is tightened by an appropriate means in the direction-of the arrow P3,'in order to bring about the seizure of the apex of the cop tube. The noose isguided in a'groove on the entire circumference of the cop tube.

"FIG. 11 shows an alternative construction for the gripper for doffing the cops," wherein the gripping means includes a plurality of engaging meinbers. Three individual grippers 7, 7" and 7" are combined into a single star-shaped gripper. The three'f grippers combined do not perform a back-and-forth movement, but are rotated contin'uously in the direction of the arrow P In this embodiment, the transmission (not shown) between thecrankshaft 16 and the'rot'ation of the push rod ll'can be by gearing or chain and must be chosen corresponding to the number of grippers, so that per stroke of thepush rod 11 imparted by the crank 15, the push rod 11 executes a fraction'of one revolution equal to the reciprocal of the number of grippers 71' for three grippers, /3' revolution and a transmission ratio from the shaft 16 of 3to 1. Every time one of'the grippers 7, 7", 7"" is above the spindle to be drawn off, it is lowered, analogously to 'the'above described execution according to FIGS. 1, 2 and 10, and again raised with the full cop. During this downlmovement and again up movement the push rod 11 continously goes, on rotatin'g the angle -so that, for example the gripper 7", as shown 'in' FIG. 11-, stands relatively still tothe'spindle during the drawing olfmovement, After drawing off of the cop, the push rod 11 continues to turn continually in the direction of the-arrow P Whenthe next gripper 7 ,is lowered .overthe nextspindle, simultaneously with this lowering movement,the"cop 0f :the gripper'7", or 7', is discharged when'it.,-is swung over the full cop receiving hopper-31 (FIG 1). Otherwise, the machine is the same. as is' set forth in the-- preceding description. r

Another pOSSlbllityifOl' moving a gripper from acariiage traveling at constant speed in such'a mannertthat it stands still, in the directionof movement ofe the carriage 1, momentarily, relative to the spindle ofathe-cop bein'g dotted, is indicated schematically'in FIG.-'12.-:'The pivot point A of lever C is fastenedto the-carriageland-moves with the latter in the direction of-thearrowrP Point'B representsthe point at which the-element for seizing-the cops is disposed. If the carriage- 1 moves-uniformly' in the direction of the arrow-P sothat the pivot point A of lever C is'displaced to A, lever C' can simultaneously be swung upward by the angle a in such a manner that point B performs'a doffing movement substantially vertically upward, in line with the spindle axis, to point B.

The lever C corresponds to the gripper 7. Point B signifies the place, at which is positioned the gripper (not shown) corresponding to the gripper 8 (FIG. 3).--The drive for lever C can be as is shown in FIG.9'for the lever 52 utilized in'loading on of empty spools. However,- the up and down movement of the lever C may alsobe imparted by an jarm driven from a-cam disc, which .is, for example, linked'to the leverwC, at the point D.-,In order to attain a:discharge 'of'the full cop into the receiver 31, on the carriage 1, the lever-C undergoes, through a buffer (not shown) or by a slight slanting posi tion of its swivel axis at point A, aislight lateral deviation. The point B is then no longer. precisely above the spindles 53,-and it is above the receiver, 31 on'the carriage 1,"

and is then discharged. In this embodiment, cam disc 21 (FIG. 2) is not used. In all other details, the machine corresponds to the previously described embodiment of FIG. 1. A In the embodiment shown in FIGS.-- 13, 14 and 15 of a cop changing apparatus of the invention,.- gripper '8"? for doffing the cops is not swung,- but isdisplaped witha slide 79, by appropriate means, duringthe doffingandthe cop tube serving operation, in the direction of arrow P contrarywise to the direction of movement ofcarriage 1-, and it returns again afterthe saiddoiiing and'cop tube serving operation; i

The movement of .the -slide 79 in. the direction of the arrow P is effected by :gear 80 and rack 81. The gear 80 is driven, via gearing (not shown) from the crankshaft 16 (FIG. 2). For the movement of the'slide 79 ,opposite to the direction of the arrow P the rack 81 is disengaged from gear .80 by, for example, providing a portion of gear 80 free of'teeth. Upon the disengagement, the return movement of the slide 79,-can take place through the action of a tension spring; Alternatively, the drive of the slide 79 may be efiectecl'throughanappropriatecrank mechanism, or through pneumatically. or. hydraulically operated pistons, wherein'forthe return movement a spring or a piston withcounterpressure is -.used. The drive takes place in synchrofnism withthe operation-of gripper 8" controlled-by thepush rod 11, as shown in FIG. 2. Thus the slide 79 can execute during the -dra wing oft movement a'corresponding movement withrespect to carriage 1, providing the desired zero relative motion. The gripper 8", after the drawing off, is disposed, over the catcher 74. The crosshead 1-2 (FIG. 2) must -be1provided with a slot sothat the push rod 11 can followthe slide movement of the slide 79. s V i The gripper 8" drops the removed cop -into a .catcher 74 from which it can be fed to a gathererby a conveyor chain in the manner previously describedzThe cop tube feeding chute 40 with the pusher 60-'-operates in a manner similarto the embodiment iin.FIG'. .L butthe necessity f0r.swinging,"as:in the case of the holder 42 (FIG. 8), is eliminated. The cop tube 37 is dropped through the guide 77 fastened-toslide179, down from the standing surface v78, onto the" spindle.53,and-can be pressed onto the'spindle'in the manner:already desoribed. In the-embodiments of FIGS. 10 and 1'l,"-the gripper is pivoted toprovide "thetransverse movement;--in thereinbodiment of FIG 13, ityismoved linearlyt i1 In the embodiment of FIG. 1'4,. -thelifting of thee-ngag ing member and moving the engaging member .-to pro= vide-the zero relative motion, isfeflected simultaneously by: the one mover means which moves theengagingrriem her in a-vertical plane. r

. While the invention hasbeen described .with respect to particularly embodiments thereof, these embodiments. are merely representative, anddo not serve to sehfortli the limits of the invention.

What is claimed is:- a w w 1. Apparatus-for use in lifting a cop" off an upright spindle comprising a carriage; means for-moving; said said carriage over a path going p'ast'the spindle at" a constant-speed with respect to the spindle, cop moving means movably mounted on the carriage for lifting the cop as theca rriage passes the spindle, said cop moving means including an engaging member for engaging the top portion of the cop for said lifting, and "means for moving the cop moving means relative to the carriage to impart to the engaging membermo-vement thereof opposite the movement of the carriage to substantially eliminate relative movement of the engaging means and the spindle in the direction of movement of the carriage, during said manipulation. t

2. Apparatus for removing filled cops from spindles therefor comprising:

V (a) a carn'age;

(b) means for moving thecarriage over a path going past the spindles one at a time and at a constant speed with respect to the spindles, (c) cop gripping means including a cop engaging mem-- ber movably-mounted on the carriage for gripping each filled cop as the carriage passes the filled cop, (d)' first mover means for moving the cop gripping means to move a filled cop engaged by the grip ping means engaging member axially of .a spindle for removal of the filled cop from the spindle, (e)- and second mover means to move the cop engaging means opposite the movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement of the cop engaging member annd the spindle in the direction of movemerit of the carriage while the engaging member isin engagement with the filled lcop until removal of f i the cop from its spindle. 3; Apparatus according to claim"2, wherein the first mover means reciprocates the gripping means in the'direction of the axes'of the spindles, and the secondmove'r means moves the gripping means in a direction transverse to the axes of the spindles to provide'said elimination of relative movement. 4 4. Apparatus according to clainr'3, and including a receiver for doffed filled cops, said receiver being mounted'on the carriage and spaced from the spindles, third mover means for moving the cop gripping means while the cop gripping means are engaged with a filled cop removed from its spindle, for delivery of the filled c'op' to the. filled cop receiver. ,r

5 Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the second mover means pivots the gripping mean's about an axis fixed with respect to the carriage and parallel to the spin dle axis, the second mover means pivoting the gripping means to rock the gripping means through a backstroke during whichthe relative movement of the gripping'rneans 171 engagementmemberand the/filled cop is eliminatedas aforesaidj and a' forward stroke during' which the gripping means is returned "forengagement of the engagement inember with the next adjacent-filled icop along the path ofthecarriage. I i 6.Apparatus according to claim 5, and including a re ceiver forremoved filled cops, said receiver being mounted on-the t carriage spaced from the spindles; said receiver being positioned =to'receive a filled cop from said gripping means during one ofsaid strokes upon release of the filled cop bythe engagement memberIand-me'an's for'etfecting said release for deliveryof the filled'cop to the receiver. -71 Apparatus according to claim 5, 'andincluding a receiver'for removed-filled cops; said receiver 'being mounted on the carriage spaced fromthe spindles; said engagemenhmemberduring said rocking moving over an are; relative to the-carriage defined 'at one end thereof by the position of the engagement member uponinitial engagement of a filled cop and at theother'end by' the position of the engagement member at the time of-removal of the filled rcop from its-spindle, said'receiver being: disposed along an extension of I said arc, said strokes of the grippingmeans extending alongacorre sponding extension of said are for delivery of filled cops to the receiver. 1 "8. Apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the receiver is disposed for receiving filled cops during said forward stroke. A r

9. Apparatus :according'to claim 3, wherein the second means pivots the gripping means to provide said transverse. movement. 10. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the second mover means moves the gripping means linearly to provide said transverse movement.

11. Apparatus according to claim 2, the second mover means moves the gripping means in a direction transverse to the axes of the spindles to provide said elimination of relative movement.

12. Apparatus according to claim 11, wherein the second mover means rotates the gripping means about an axis fixed with respect to the carriage and parallel to the spindle axes, to move the. gripping means engaging member into position for engagement of a filled cop, thereafter to move the engaging member to eliminate said relative movement as aforesaid, and after said removal of the cop from its spindle to return. the engaging memher to said position for engagement of a filled cop, a receiver for filled cops on.said carriage spaced from the spindle and disposed-along the path of the engaging means as it moves from the time of removal of the cop from its spindle to said position for engagement of a filled cop, and means for releasing a filled cop from the engaging means for delivery thereof to said receiver.

13. Apparatus according to claim 2, and including a receiver for doffed filled cops, said receiver being spaced from the spindles, and third mover means for moving the cop gripping means while engaged with a filled cop removed from its spindle for delivery of the filled cop to the filled cop receiver.

14. Apparatus according to claim 13, said receiver being mounted on the carriage.

15., Apparatus according to claim 2, and empty cop manipulating means mounted on the carriage for manipulating empty cops during a single passage of the carrier over saidpath to place empty cops on spindles from which spindles, filled cops have been removed during said single passage.

16. Apparatus according to claim 15, said manipulating means effecting placement of each empty cop on a spindle by movement of the cop axially of the spindle into the cop loaded position, and including an empty cop mover means for moving the empty cop opposite the movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement, in the direction of movement of the carriage, of the aaoasoe emptyzcop and the spindle on which it is placed during tn'ovement'of the empty cop axially of the spindle.

17. Apparatus according to claim16, and further including "empty-cop presser means for pushing the cop axially'of the spindle during saidmovement of the cop a'xially of the spindle, and mover means for the presser means for-moving the presser means opposite the movementiof -the carriage-to eliminate relative movement, in the directionof relative movement of the carriage, of the presser. means and the spindle in which it is placed during movement of the empty cop axially of the spindle. 18. Apparatus according to claim 15, said manipulating means effecting placement of each empty cop on a spindle .by movement of the cop axially of the spindle into the cop loaded position, and further including empty cop presser means for pushing the cop axially of the spindle duringsaid movement of the cop axially of the spindlei and movermeans for the presser means for moving the presser means opposite the movement of the carriage to eliminate relative movement, in the direction bf relative movement ofthe carriage, of the presser means and the spin'dleon which it is placed during movement ofthe empty cop axially of the spindle.

*-19.' Apparatus according to claim 15, said manipulating means including means for dropping empty cops onto spindles disposed vertically -for free falling of the empty cops onto the spindles.

20. Apparatus according to claim 15, said spindles being disposed vertically and for removal and placement of cops from the topthereof, said empty cop manipulating means comprising a holder disposed above the spindles-for holding an empty spindle in upright p'osition-'above the spindles and having a spindle receivin}; end and a spindle discharge end, a rest disposed above -the spindles and for receiving a spindle from the holder discharge end, said rest being fixedly positioned on said carriage and disposed for supporting empty cops received from the holder over the spindles, and means for moving an emptycop from the holder discharge end to the rest, and means for pushing an empty cop from said rest for falling thereof onto a spindle.

' 21. "Apparatus according to claim 20, a magazine for empty cops mounted on said carriage, said magazine having a delivery opening disposed for issuing empty cops from the magazine, a conveyor for receiving empty cops issued by the magazine and carrying the empty cops one at a' time at a fixed rate to a level disposed above the holderand dropping the empty cops from said level, a guideway for receiving empty cops dropped by the conveyor and delivering them to said holder receiving end in upright position for dropping onto a spindle, and a pusher for -pushing the empty cops through said holder from the receiving end to the delivery end thereof. 22. Apparatus according to claim 15, and including a magazinefor'empty cops, a conveyor for withdrawing copsafrom the magazine and'delivering them to the manipulating means, said magazine comprising a container mounted on thecarriage with its bottom inclined to'the'hoiiz'ontal to gravity feed cops within the container to a'bottom edge corner of the container, means defining anopening in said bottom edge corner for entry of conveyor elements for the withdrawal by the conveyor, :1 depending partition disposed in the container parallel to said bottom edge corner and terminating short of the bottom-{said partition dividing the container to provide a cop loading section which includes, said bottom edge corner and a cop holding section, a plurality of cops in the holding section, the dimension of each of said sections perpendicular to partition being less than the length of the cops.

'23." Apparatus according to claim 2, said first mover means comprising a reciprocating member directly connected to the gripping member and for imparting reciprocatiorfto the gripping means in the direction of the spindle"axes, said second mover means comprising a rocker for turning said reciprocating member in a direction transverse to the axes of the spindles to thereby turn the gripping member in a direction transverse to the spindle axes, and a cam follower, said apparatus further comprising a crank shaft and a crank connecting rod connected to said reciprocating member, and a cam mounted on said shaft for driving the cam follower and imparting a rocking motion to said rocker.

24. Apparatus according to claim 2, the gripping means comprising an arm having said engaging member disposed adjacent one end thereof, said engaging member comprising an insert for insertion to the end of a hollow cop, and being expandible to permit it to grip the inside surface of the cop following said insertion, and means for expanding the insert following insertion thereof into a cop.

25. Apparatus according to claim 2, gripping means comprising an arm having the said engaging member disposed adjacent one end thereof, said engaging member comprising a socket for disposition with the'end of a hollow cop received therein, said socket being contractible to permit it to grip the outside surface of the cop following receipt of the cop therein, and means for contracting the socket following receipt of the cop 26. Apparatus according to claim 2, the gripping means comprising a plurality of engaging members as aforesaid.

27. Apparatus for use in lifting a cop off an upright spindle comprising a carriage,. means for moving said carriage over a path going past the spindle at a constant speed with respect to the spindle, cop moving means movably mounted on the carriage for lifting the cop: as the carriage passes the spindle, said cop moving means including an engaging member for engaging the top portion of the cop, said cop moving means simultaneously lifting the engaging member for lifting the cop off its References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,150,649 8/1915 Williams 5753 2,886,940 5/1959 Urano et al 57-53 FOREIGN PATENTS 585,377 11/1958 Italy.

JOHN PETRAKES, Primary Examiner. 

